Press Releases

Applications now available online for the 12th annual Carl N. and Margaret Karcher Founders’ Scholarship program

CARPINTERIA, Calif. – January 5, 2011 – Carrying on its commitment to advanced education, Carl’s Jr.® is pleased to announce the commencement of its 12th annual Carl
N. and Margaret Karcher Founders’ Scholarship program. The scholarship
application is now available online, at www.carlsjr.com/promotions.
The submission deadline is Feb. 1, 2011.

Through the scholarship program, 60 deserving students will receive $1,000 each to the two- or four-year college or vocational school of their choice.

The scholarship program was established by the company founders to reward hardworking youths. Carl N. and Margaret Karcher started their company as a young married couple in 1941, believing they could earn success through their commitment to faith, service and hard work. Now, 70 years later, Carl’s Jr. is proud to honor the late founders’ commitment to the community.

“Carl Karcher was not only a great businessman, but also a very compassionate man,” said Andrew F. Puzder, CEO of CKE Restaurants, Inc., parent company of Carl’s Jr. “Carl said ‘Whenever you’re successful, you owe it to the people in the community.’ The Founders’ Scholarship program is part of our ongoing efforts to give back to people in the communities throughout the West who have helped Carl’s Jr. succeed over the past 70 years.”

Scholarship winners will be selected based on academic record, school and community leadership and participation, work experience and future goals. Financial need and other family circumstances also will be considered. In economic tough times, scholarship programs like this are invaluable to the community. Giving back to hardworking youths in need is part of the core value structure of Carl’s Jr.

Applicants for the Carl N. and Margaret Karcher Founders’ Scholarship must be high school seniors or graduates, age 21 or younger, who are planning to enroll for the first time at an accredited two- or four-year college or vocational school. Applicants must be residents of the states in which Carl’s Jr. operates restaurants: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, Utah or Washington.

Since the inception of the program in 1999, Carl’s Jr. has granted $450,000 in scholarships. This year’s scholarships will help push that total over the half million dollar mark.

Complete information about the Carl N. and Margaret Karcher Founders’ Scholarship application process and a downloadable application are available only on the Carl’s Jr. website, at www.carlsjr.com/promotions.

The Carl N. and Margaret Karcher Founders’ Scholarship is administered by Scholarship Management Services®, a division of Scholarship America®. Scholarship Management Services is the nation’s largest designer and manager of scholarship and tuition reimbursement programs for corporations, foundations, associations and individuals. Employees, affiliates and franchisees of Carl Karcher Enterprises, Inc., Scholarship America, affiliated agencies, and their immediate families are not eligible to receive a scholarship pursuant to this program.

About Carl’s Jr.

Carl’s Jr. is celebrating 70 years in the quick-service industry. What began as a lone hot dog cart in Los Angeles, Calif. in 1941 is today a wholly owned subsidiary of CKE Restaurants, Inc. of Carpinteria, Calif. As of the end of its third quarter of fiscal 2011, CKE, through its subsidiaries, had a total of 3,153 franchised, licensed or company-operated restaurants in 42 states and in 18 countries, including 1,245 Carl's Jr.® restaurants and 1,896 Hardee's® restaurants. For more information, or to find a Carl’s Jr. near you, go to www.carlsjr.com. Carl’s Jr. social media sites include www.facebook.com/carlsjr, www.twitter.com/carlsjr and www.youtube.com/carlsjr.